WEBVTT 00:00:02.000 --> 00:00:05.059 As the week wore on, I was grateful that we had 00:00:05.059 --> 00:00:08.259 a guest speaker coming in this Sunday because 00:00:08.259 --> 00:00:10.519 I came down with a virus earlier in the week 00:00:10.519 --> 00:00:12.240 and I could tell the way it was headed where 00:00:12.240 --> 00:00:15.759 it was going, where it usually does in my case, 00:00:15.919 --> 00:00:19.699 into my bronchioles. And so last night when I 00:00:19.699 --> 00:00:23.600 got the confirmed word at 830 that Warren's flight 00:00:23.600 --> 00:00:26.260 had been canceled out of Chicago, I thought, 00:00:26.379 --> 00:00:29.070 well, Lord, you know what you're doing. You're 00:00:29.070 --> 00:00:31.410 in charge of throats as much as you are in charge 00:00:31.410 --> 00:00:38.109 of snowstorms and so we're trusting you. I actually 00:00:38.109 --> 00:00:40.109 feel rather comfortable doing this standing in 00:00:40.109 --> 00:00:43.429 his place because as you may know I was his associate 00:00:43.429 --> 00:00:45.869 for a couple of years back early in my ministry 00:00:45.869 --> 00:00:48.710 and every time I preached I was there in place 00:00:48.710 --> 00:00:52.429 of Warren Wiersbie and so this is a rather comfortable 00:00:52.429 --> 00:00:56.700 position for me to be in this morning. And I 00:00:56.700 --> 00:00:58.799 learned then that you don't fill his shoes, you 00:00:58.799 --> 00:01:02.979 set them aside and grow into your own. I'm going 00:01:02.979 --> 00:01:05.040 to ask you to open your Bible with me to Philippians 00:01:05.040 --> 00:01:09.780 chapter 1. Obviously there wasn't a lot of time 00:01:09.780 --> 00:01:15.480 to plow new ground for this morning. And so as 00:01:15.480 --> 00:01:19.579 I thought about a text I wanted to use, I went 00:01:19.579 --> 00:01:22.549 back to the well where I've been Drawing the 00:01:22.549 --> 00:01:24.989 Water for the Last Few Weeks for My Own Soul 00:01:24.989 --> 00:01:31.489 in Philippians chapter 1. I noted in reading 00:01:31.489 --> 00:01:37.469 through this chapter that the word gospel occurs 00:01:37.469 --> 00:01:40.629 over and over again. In fact, it's used six times 00:01:40.629 --> 00:01:42.849 in chapter 1. It's interesting to me that it's 00:01:42.849 --> 00:01:44.629 only used three times in the whole rest of the 00:01:44.629 --> 00:01:50.230 book. In the first chapter, six times, the Apostle 00:01:50.230 --> 00:01:55.530 Paul refers to the gospel, the good news. And 00:01:55.530 --> 00:01:59.709 he defines it as the gospel of Christ toward 00:01:59.709 --> 00:02:03.870 the end of the chapter. It is the gospel of Christ. 00:02:03.930 --> 00:02:07.049 Verse 27, let your conduct be worthy of the gospel 00:02:07.049 --> 00:02:11.590 of Christ, the good news about Christ. So that 00:02:11.590 --> 00:02:15.389 gives us the content of the word gospel. He is 00:02:15.389 --> 00:02:17.750 talking about the good news concerning Jesus 00:02:17.750 --> 00:02:19.889 Christ, and the focus of that, of course, is 00:02:19.889 --> 00:02:26.740 his death. for our sins, his burial, and then 00:02:26.740 --> 00:02:29.699 his resurrection from the dead. That's the focus 00:02:29.699 --> 00:02:32.639 of the gospel. Now, there's a whole lot more 00:02:32.639 --> 00:02:35.620 that surrounds that, as you know and I know, 00:02:36.139 --> 00:02:38.860 but that's the diamond in the center of the ring, 00:02:39.680 --> 00:02:43.080 the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's the 00:02:43.080 --> 00:02:46.379 good news of what he has done for us, but it 00:02:46.379 --> 00:02:50.430 also includes our necessary response to the gospel, 00:02:50.729 --> 00:02:55.229 which is to believe it, to place our faith entirely 00:02:55.229 --> 00:03:01.069 in the Savior, to trust in Him alone. And that 00:03:01.069 --> 00:03:03.689 involves a turning from our sin, a repentance 00:03:03.689 --> 00:03:07.069 on our part, as well as a belief, like two sides 00:03:07.069 --> 00:03:11.430 to one coin. The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:03:12.289 --> 00:03:16.509 It seems to me that in this chapter, The Apostle 00:03:16.509 --> 00:03:19.650 Paul is telling us that the gospel of Christ 00:03:19.650 --> 00:03:28.210 demands a radical reordering of our lives. The 00:03:28.210 --> 00:03:32.990 gospel of Jesus Christ demands a radical reordering 00:03:32.990 --> 00:03:38.009 of our lives. There are three phrases that caught 00:03:38.009 --> 00:03:41.939 my attention as I noticed the word gospel. The 00:03:41.939 --> 00:03:44.120 first one is found in verse 5 where he speaks 00:03:44.120 --> 00:03:48.919 about the fellowship of the gospel. Philippians 00:03:48.919 --> 00:03:52.620 1 verse 5, he says, for your fellowship in the 00:03:52.620 --> 00:03:55.560 gospel from the first day until now. Paul says, 00:03:55.759 --> 00:03:58.919 I thank God for that. For your fellowship in 00:03:58.919 --> 00:04:01.180 the gospel. The word fellowship here means a 00:04:01.180 --> 00:04:07.060 joint participation. It comes from our word for 00:04:07.060 --> 00:04:11.629 fellowship as well. It means the Having something 00:04:11.629 --> 00:04:15.509 in common interest, partnership is the way some 00:04:15.509 --> 00:04:19.029 translations put it. It is a joint participation 00:04:19.029 --> 00:04:21.430 in something that people share in together, the 00:04:21.430 --> 00:04:25.829 fellowship of the gospel. When I see that word, 00:04:26.709 --> 00:04:31.509 I'm reminded that sin is the great divider, that 00:04:31.509 --> 00:04:37.029 sin is the great separator. Humanity is separated 00:04:37.029 --> 00:04:41.370 because of sin from God, and from one another. 00:04:43.350 --> 00:04:48.670 And we see that proof all around us. We see it, 00:04:48.670 --> 00:04:51.430 for example, in the separation that is becoming 00:04:51.430 --> 00:04:55.509 exaggerated again in the races, particularly 00:04:55.509 --> 00:05:00.250 in America, where we thought we had racial equality 00:05:00.250 --> 00:05:05.730 and where the work of a few leaders 20 years 00:05:05.730 --> 00:05:09.680 ago put an end to racial prejudice and bias, 00:05:10.600 --> 00:05:14.579 but we see that actually it didn't. It covered 00:05:14.579 --> 00:05:19.860 it over for a while perhaps, but again we see 00:05:19.860 --> 00:05:23.660 prejudice raising its ugly head in our society. 00:05:25.399 --> 00:05:28.220 We see it with blacks and whites in particular. 00:05:31.319 --> 00:05:34.339 The campus at Bethel College has recently undergone 00:05:34.339 --> 00:05:38.279 the trauma of this sort of of bias by the threats 00:05:38.279 --> 00:05:42.399 of a white supremacist former student who has 00:05:42.399 --> 00:05:45.439 threatened a professor and his family on that 00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:50.079 campus. And we see it in our newspapers week 00:05:50.079 --> 00:05:53.579 upon week violence of one race against the other 00:05:53.579 --> 00:05:57.560 and very often black against white or white against 00:05:57.560 --> 00:06:04.199 black. Racial prejudice is with us and it's evidence 00:06:04.199 --> 00:06:11.079 of sin. Because sin isolates. Sin pulls us apart 00:06:11.079 --> 00:06:15.519 from one another. Our family has had the privilege 00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:20.600 of befriending an international student. His 00:06:20.600 --> 00:06:23.920 name is David. David attends Hamlin University. 00:06:25.959 --> 00:06:31.199 A very intelligent, articulate young black man 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:36.769 from Zimbabwe in Africa. 19 years old, a jet 00:06:36.769 --> 00:06:43.370 fighter pilot in the Zimbabwe Air Force, a man 00:06:43.370 --> 00:06:45.269 who has traveled in many parts of the world, 00:06:45.470 --> 00:06:48.550 speaks six different languages, 19 years old, 00:06:49.689 --> 00:06:52.089 and studying in the United States, planning to 00:06:52.089 --> 00:06:56.350 stay here to make this his home. He's got a brother 00:06:56.350 --> 00:06:58.589 who lives in Boston, a sister who lives on the 00:06:58.589 --> 00:07:02.050 East Coast, though his parents still live in 00:07:02.050 --> 00:07:06.819 Zimbabwe. But David was the object of racial 00:07:06.819 --> 00:07:11.279 threats a few weeks ago because he was dating 00:07:11.279 --> 00:07:15.160 a white girl on the Hamlin campus, the bastion 00:07:15.160 --> 00:07:21.300 of liberalism. But because he was dating a white 00:07:21.300 --> 00:07:26.860 girl, he received a threat telling him as a black 00:07:26.860 --> 00:07:33.279 man to stay in his place. You see, racial prejudice 00:07:33.279 --> 00:07:36.740 and bias does not stop at certain political lines. 00:07:39.379 --> 00:07:42.199 Racial prejudice and bias goes to the very heart 00:07:42.199 --> 00:07:46.720 of the human being, which is sinful. That's its 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:54.500 origin. We see it too in rising anti -Semitism, 00:07:56.540 --> 00:08:01.259 even in our own nation. Throughout the world 00:08:01.259 --> 00:08:03.660 it is true and that is of course why so many 00:08:03.660 --> 00:08:05.839 Jews are seeking to get out of Russia as fast 00:08:05.839 --> 00:08:09.639 as possible. And one of the reasons that Israel 00:08:09.639 --> 00:08:13.779 is so upset about the recent denial of loan guarantees 00:08:13.779 --> 00:08:15.980 from the United States is they were using those 00:08:15.980 --> 00:08:19.060 guarantees to build housing for Jews coming from 00:08:19.060 --> 00:08:23.199 Russia. I know they were building the housing 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:26.860 where they were and that's the problem. But you 00:08:26.860 --> 00:08:28.579 see, they're trying to get the Jews out of Russia 00:08:28.579 --> 00:08:31.019 as quickly as possible because of the escalating 00:08:31.019 --> 00:08:34.019 anti -Semitism in Russia. They don't know how 00:08:34.019 --> 00:08:36.539 long the door will be open to get the Jews out 00:08:36.539 --> 00:08:40.600 of there. I should say the former Soviet Union, 00:08:40.720 --> 00:08:43.899 shouldn't they? Not Russia. But it's not just 00:08:43.899 --> 00:08:47.259 Russia. We see it in our own country. We see 00:08:47.259 --> 00:08:51.100 people going into graveyards and pushing over 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:55.860 tombstones. We see epithets and symbols painted 00:08:55.860 --> 00:09:03.100 on walls of synagogues. Racial hatred. It is 00:09:03.100 --> 00:09:08.000 the result of sin, sin which separates people 00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:16.340 from people, as well as people from God. We see 00:09:16.340 --> 00:09:20.019 the evidence of sin likewise in the division 00:09:20.019 --> 00:09:25.830 of classes. This has not been true to a great 00:09:25.830 --> 00:09:28.070 extent in the United States in the past, but 00:09:28.070 --> 00:09:31.590 it seems to be coming more and more to the front, 00:09:31.789 --> 00:09:35.509 the division of people based upon wealth, their 00:09:35.509 --> 00:09:39.309 economic status, their class in our society. 00:09:40.210 --> 00:09:43.070 And certain politicians are playing that theme. 00:09:44.169 --> 00:09:46.570 And I think personally it's a very dangerous 00:09:46.570 --> 00:09:53.960 theme to be played. There seems to be an emphasis 00:09:53.960 --> 00:09:58.200 on the part of some unscrupulous people to further 00:09:58.200 --> 00:10:01.980 divide the American public by playing upon racial 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:07.940 and social hatreds. The evidence of sin, because 00:10:07.940 --> 00:10:13.179 sin is the source of separation. We see it in 00:10:13.179 --> 00:10:17.720 the emphasis upon buying American -made automobiles. 00:10:20.000 --> 00:10:22.580 And whether this be class or it be race, I don't 00:10:22.580 --> 00:10:26.340 know. Because the point is a lot of automobiles 00:10:26.340 --> 00:10:32.259 today are made in Asia. And there is a movement 00:10:32.259 --> 00:10:35.919 to buy American. Of course, the only problem 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:39.860 is when you try to do that, it's very hard. Because 00:10:39.860 --> 00:10:42.059 most of even what says made in America on it 00:10:42.059 --> 00:10:45.100 has components from other parts of the world. 00:10:46.299 --> 00:10:52.000 It's true. We do have a global economy. But the 00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:56.779 kinds of divisions that we see arising in our 00:10:56.779 --> 00:11:00.559 world today come out of sin. We see it in the 00:11:00.559 --> 00:11:05.200 battle of the sexes. Once again, we get into 00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.960 the election year and we see polls upon polls. 00:11:08.059 --> 00:11:12.720 Men feel this way. Women feel this way. Certain 00:11:12.720 --> 00:11:16.240 women's groups have their agenda, their political 00:11:16.240 --> 00:11:20.240 agenda. Other groups have their agenda. Division. 00:11:21.660 --> 00:11:26.259 Separation, isolation, and it comes about because 00:11:26.259 --> 00:11:29.100 of sin. Now that's the marvelous thing about 00:11:29.100 --> 00:11:31.919 the gospel, you see, because the gospel restores. 00:11:33.000 --> 00:11:37.899 The gospel unites. The gospel of Jesus Christ 00:11:37.899 --> 00:11:40.799 brings together what before had been separated. 00:11:42.639 --> 00:11:46.299 The gospel of Jesus Christ destroys all the sin 00:11:46.299 --> 00:11:52.700 -made walls that separate people. And why is 00:11:52.700 --> 00:11:56.399 that? Because when we come to the cross of Jesus 00:11:56.399 --> 00:12:03.419 Christ, we come to the great equalizer. The ground 00:12:03.419 --> 00:12:08.179 is level at the cross. We come to the cross of 00:12:08.179 --> 00:12:13.419 Jesus Christ and receive the Savior in the very 00:12:13.419 --> 00:12:16.039 same way, no matter who we are or what our race 00:12:16.039 --> 00:12:20.480 or economics or male or female. The gospel of 00:12:20.480 --> 00:12:24.679 Jesus Christ destroys all the sin -made walls 00:12:24.679 --> 00:12:29.600 that separate, all of the distinctions that cause 00:12:29.600 --> 00:12:34.379 people to hate one another. Paul says, I thank 00:12:34.379 --> 00:12:38.019 God for the fellowship of the gospel, that which 00:12:38.019 --> 00:12:41.480 we have a joint participation in. It's interesting 00:12:41.480 --> 00:12:45.080 to me that Paul, when he went to Philippi, began 00:12:45.080 --> 00:12:50.320 evangelism with a group of women. who were meeting 00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:55.320 for prayer beside a river. That's how the gospel 00:12:55.320 --> 00:13:00.799 got started in Philippi. Women who were much 00:13:00.799 --> 00:13:05.840 more less esteemed in that day than some people 00:13:05.840 --> 00:13:09.720 think they are today. Looked down upon. And yet 00:13:09.720 --> 00:13:11.659 that's where the gospel began. And Paul says, 00:13:11.820 --> 00:13:14.759 I look back to the very beginning when God began 00:13:14.759 --> 00:13:16.940 His work on you and I thank God for what He did 00:13:16.940 --> 00:13:20.799 that very first day. when Lydia was saved and 00:13:20.799 --> 00:13:23.919 some of those other women beside the riverbank, 00:13:24.019 --> 00:13:26.860 that prayer meeting, and others of you who've 00:13:26.860 --> 00:13:31.059 been saved. That jailer, remember him? Jailers 00:13:31.059 --> 00:13:33.240 were not exactly the most popular people in the 00:13:33.240 --> 00:13:35.720 world because of the kind of work they were in. 00:13:36.039 --> 00:13:39.399 God saved a jailer, a despised class of people 00:13:39.399 --> 00:13:43.759 in that day. You see how the gospel from the 00:13:43.759 --> 00:13:46.519 very first day in Philippi began to break down 00:13:46.519 --> 00:13:51.529 the barriers. and to level out people at the 00:13:51.529 --> 00:13:56.190 cross. And therefore the cross demands a radical 00:13:56.190 --> 00:14:01.370 reordering of our lives. The cross of Jesus Christ 00:14:01.370 --> 00:14:04.590 is the only answer to those things that are separating 00:14:04.590 --> 00:14:08.610 people from people and certainly people from 00:14:08.610 --> 00:14:15.909 God. Dr. Raleigh Washington is the pastor of 00:14:15.909 --> 00:14:18.970 the Rock of Our Salvation Evangelical Free Church. 00:14:19.490 --> 00:14:24.490 I love that name. The Rock of Our Salvation Evangelical 00:14:24.490 --> 00:14:29.149 Free Church in the inner city, black populated 00:14:29.149 --> 00:14:32.850 area of Chicago. Just the west side of downtown. 00:14:35.690 --> 00:14:38.049 I heard the choir from that church a few weeks 00:14:38.049 --> 00:14:40.429 ago. Boy, it was exciting. They get up to this 00:14:40.429 --> 00:14:42.330 area occasionally and if they ever do again, 00:14:42.350 --> 00:14:45.690 I'd love to have them here at Grace Church. Now, 00:14:45.690 --> 00:14:48.009 some of you would probably need a pacemaker or 00:14:48.009 --> 00:14:50.789 something to make it through the concert. But 00:14:50.789 --> 00:14:53.129 let me tell you, it's exciting music. I mean, 00:14:53.149 --> 00:14:58.190 it moves. Raleigh Washington was preaching to 00:14:58.190 --> 00:15:03.250 an audience that was quite mixed racially. He 00:15:03.250 --> 00:15:07.149 began to refer to Dr. Martin Luther King, who 00:15:07.149 --> 00:15:10.830 of course was the great crusader for racial equality, 00:15:11.889 --> 00:15:16.769 and who was assassinated back in the 1960s. And 00:15:16.769 --> 00:15:18.950 he commended Dr. King for some of the good things 00:15:18.950 --> 00:15:20.470 that he did. And then he said, and I thought 00:15:20.470 --> 00:15:22.690 it was very significant for him to say this as 00:15:22.690 --> 00:15:26.389 a black leader in Chicago. He said there was 00:15:26.389 --> 00:15:30.870 one thing that was missing from Dr. King's message. 00:15:34.210 --> 00:15:37.210 And he said that one thing that was missing was 00:15:37.210 --> 00:15:39.250 the most crucial part of anything he could have 00:15:39.250 --> 00:15:43.149 said. And that one thing that was missing was 00:15:43.149 --> 00:15:49.100 the cross of Jesus Christ. He had many good things 00:15:49.100 --> 00:15:52.539 to say regarding people and relationships, but 00:15:52.539 --> 00:15:54.879 he missed the heart of it. He missed the cross 00:15:54.879 --> 00:16:00.759 of Jesus Christ, that which alone can truly bring 00:16:00.759 --> 00:16:06.059 into fellowship people who are separated from 00:16:06.059 --> 00:16:13.460 God and separated from one another. The root 00:16:13.460 --> 00:16:17.559 of the gospel is the grace of God. Paul says 00:16:17.559 --> 00:16:20.700 in the text that he, along with the Philippians, 00:16:20.740 --> 00:16:29.000 were sharers in that grace. And he says earlier 00:16:29.000 --> 00:16:33.279 in the chapter, grace to you. The grace of God 00:16:33.279 --> 00:16:38.700 is the root of salvation. The fruit of salvation 00:16:38.700 --> 00:16:44.299 is the peace of God. Grace and peace to you, 00:16:44.519 --> 00:16:50.779 he says. Peace flows from the cross Where before 00:16:50.779 --> 00:16:54.200 there is war and division and isolation and prejudice 00:16:54.200 --> 00:17:00.220 and bias and hatred because of sin When the gospel 00:17:00.220 --> 00:17:02.720 of Jesus Christ is preached and believed and 00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:05.940 when the cross is established it ends all of 00:17:05.940 --> 00:17:13.460 that and it brings peace and restoration and 00:17:13.460 --> 00:17:17.460 oneness and wholeness where before There was 00:17:17.460 --> 00:17:25.660 only deep enmity. The gospel of Jesus Christ 00:17:25.660 --> 00:17:31.099 demands a radical reordering of our lives. If 00:17:31.099 --> 00:17:34.180 before we came to the cross we were infected 00:17:34.180 --> 00:17:38.740 by the kind of diseases we've talked about that 00:17:38.740 --> 00:17:42.400 flow from sin, where there is division and hatred 00:17:42.400 --> 00:17:45.230 and prejudice, We need to realize that there 00:17:45.230 --> 00:17:48.109 is no room for any of that now this side of the 00:17:48.109 --> 00:17:53.470 cross. It's over. And it can be over, and we 00:17:53.470 --> 00:17:56.289 understand it. And it's not just that we're covering 00:17:56.289 --> 00:18:00.509 it over, it's truly finished because we see other 00:18:00.509 --> 00:18:04.809 people through the cross. The cross of Jesus 00:18:04.809 --> 00:18:09.089 Christ demands a radical reordering of our lives. 00:18:10.369 --> 00:18:13.579 As he speaks about the fellowship of the gospel, 00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:17.640 the joint participation that we have in the gospel. 00:18:18.880 --> 00:18:22.359 And whether we be black or yellow or white or 00:18:22.359 --> 00:18:30.400 red or we be poor or rich or middle class or 00:18:30.400 --> 00:18:33.299 male or female or whatever we be in any of the 00:18:33.299 --> 00:18:35.519 divisions that we make at the cross of Jesus 00:18:35.519 --> 00:18:40.140 Christ, we are brought into fellowship, the fellowship 00:18:40.140 --> 00:18:44.420 of the gospel. I'd like you to look further down 00:18:44.420 --> 00:18:46.420 into the text and notice with me in verse 12 00:18:46.420 --> 00:18:50.980 the furtherance of the gospel. Here we come to 00:18:50.980 --> 00:18:54.420 Paul's purpose in life. Verse 12 says, I want 00:18:54.420 --> 00:18:55.980 you to know, brethren, that the things which 00:18:55.980 --> 00:18:58.180 happened to me have actually turned out for the 00:18:58.180 --> 00:19:00.819 furtherance of the gospel. See, what translation 00:19:00.819 --> 00:19:02.660 are you using? I thought you would ask that eventually. 00:19:04.740 --> 00:19:07.299 When I found out at 8 .30 last night I was preaching 00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:09.920 today, the only Bible I had near me was the New 00:19:09.920 --> 00:19:14.029 King James Version. And so I used that as I prepared 00:19:14.029 --> 00:19:15.990 for this morning. How many of you carry the New 00:19:15.990 --> 00:19:19.150 King James or some version of the King James, 00:19:19.309 --> 00:19:21.470 be it the Schofield Study Bible or whatever? 00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:24.170 Would you lift your hands? I want to get an idea. 00:19:25.410 --> 00:19:29.109 Okay, thank you. Well, all of us have the right 00:19:29.109 --> 00:19:33.589 Bible, of course. Now, how many of you use the 00:19:33.589 --> 00:19:37.630 New American Standard, which I normally preach 00:19:37.630 --> 00:19:40.529 from? Okay, keep them up just a second so I can 00:19:40.529 --> 00:19:43.549 try to get an idea here. Alright, thank you. 00:19:44.069 --> 00:19:46.309 How many of you use the NIV? Would you lift your 00:19:46.309 --> 00:19:51.190 hands? Well, we are a divided church. I better 00:19:51.190 --> 00:19:53.230 go back and preach that first point again, the 00:19:53.230 --> 00:20:00.109 fellowship of the gospel. The NIV, by the way, 00:20:00.309 --> 00:20:06.609 is outselling all other Bibles. The NASV, which 00:20:06.609 --> 00:20:09.069 I preach from, which many of you have, is a Bible 00:20:09.069 --> 00:20:12.190 that is sliding down the tubes apparently. Fewer 00:20:12.190 --> 00:20:14.089 and fewer are buying it and whether it will be 00:20:14.089 --> 00:20:17.349 published one day, who knows. But the NIV, 30 00:20:17.349 --> 00:20:20.430 % or more of all Bibles sold are NIV Bibles. 00:20:21.670 --> 00:20:23.630 That's one reason I have been preaching from 00:20:23.630 --> 00:20:26.230 Philippians in the NIV and twice as many of us 00:20:26.230 --> 00:20:29.970 have the NIV as any other translation, at least 00:20:29.970 --> 00:20:34.210 in this congregation. But the new King James 00:20:34.210 --> 00:20:36.650 calls it the furtherance of the Gospel. I needed 00:20:36.650 --> 00:20:41.319 an F and that's why I enjoy the King James. The 00:20:41.319 --> 00:20:43.799 fellowship of the gospel, now the furtherance 00:20:43.799 --> 00:20:46.960 of the gospel. The furtherance of the gospel. 00:20:48.559 --> 00:20:51.740 How does this happen, this furtherance of the 00:20:51.740 --> 00:20:55.400 gospel? How does this advance happen? Well, let 00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:57.480 me suggest to you it happens, first of all, through 00:20:57.480 --> 00:21:02.400 ordinary people. Now, we might now call Paul 00:21:02.400 --> 00:21:06.339 ordinary because he was a rather unusual person 00:21:06.339 --> 00:21:09.630 in that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ. Not 00:21:09.630 --> 00:21:13.210 many of those around today. In fact, there weren't 00:21:13.210 --> 00:21:15.470 many of them around then. None around today. 00:21:17.470 --> 00:21:19.750 But Paul is not just talking about himself being 00:21:19.750 --> 00:21:21.990 used to advance the gospel. He's talking about 00:21:21.990 --> 00:21:26.650 others in Rome who were not in prison but who 00:21:26.650 --> 00:21:30.450 were preaching the gospel now. They were emboldened 00:21:30.450 --> 00:21:35.539 to do so because of his condition. And he is 00:21:35.539 --> 00:21:37.480 commending the Philippians because of the fact 00:21:37.480 --> 00:21:39.940 the gospel was being advanced through them. The 00:21:39.940 --> 00:21:42.940 point I'm making is that the furtherance of the 00:21:42.940 --> 00:21:48.259 gospel happens through ordinary people. Sometimes 00:21:48.259 --> 00:21:50.440 we think it only happens through missionaries, 00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:54.279 or through preachers, or through evangelists, 00:21:54.299 --> 00:21:56.599 or people who are called to some particular kind 00:21:56.599 --> 00:21:59.259 of ministry. No, no. The fact is that all of 00:21:59.259 --> 00:22:02.960 us have a share in the advance of the gospel, 00:22:03.019 --> 00:22:05.599 it being furthered. It happens through ordinary 00:22:05.599 --> 00:22:09.579 people, and not only that, it happens through 00:22:09.579 --> 00:22:15.019 ordinary methods. Now, when Paul started in Philippi, 00:22:15.039 --> 00:22:17.680 there was an earthquake. I remember that, too. 00:22:17.880 --> 00:22:22.619 He was in jail, singing at midnight, and the 00:22:22.619 --> 00:22:24.799 prisoners were listening to him and Silas as 00:22:24.799 --> 00:22:28.660 they sang their duets. And then it says there 00:22:28.660 --> 00:22:32.720 was an earthquake that shook the place. and their 00:22:32.720 --> 00:22:37.539 bonds were loosened and Paul and Silas were free. 00:22:40.259 --> 00:22:44.519 Now, that would get somebody's attention. You 00:22:44.519 --> 00:22:46.960 know, God doesn't use earthquakes very often. 00:22:48.779 --> 00:22:50.519 Now, there are some people around today who think 00:22:50.519 --> 00:22:54.440 that the gospel is authenticated through signs, 00:22:54.539 --> 00:22:58.200 wonders, and miracles. and that if you don't 00:22:58.200 --> 00:23:00.900 have those kinds of power encounters and power 00:23:00.900 --> 00:23:03.160 shows, then people aren't going to believe the 00:23:03.160 --> 00:23:08.859 gospel. I disagree with that. There are times 00:23:08.859 --> 00:23:13.599 when God chooses to demonstrate his power in 00:23:13.599 --> 00:23:17.779 some way, but those are exceptions and they are 00:23:17.779 --> 00:23:24.420 rare. God advances his gospel through very ordinary 00:23:24.420 --> 00:23:29.799 means like just talking. Twice Paul refers in 00:23:29.799 --> 00:23:33.359 chapter 1 to his defense of the gospel. The word 00:23:33.359 --> 00:23:37.579 means his oral defense. Paul was not going to 00:23:37.579 --> 00:23:40.140 get before Nero, if he ever did, and as far as 00:23:40.140 --> 00:23:43.440 we know he didn't. But at this point he didn't 00:23:43.440 --> 00:23:46.180 know that and so he was planning his oral defense 00:23:46.180 --> 00:23:49.619 before Caesar. He was not going to call down 00:23:49.619 --> 00:23:53.640 fire from heaven. He was not going to throw a 00:23:53.640 --> 00:23:55.859 cane down on the floor to become a snake before 00:23:55.859 --> 00:24:01.250 Nero. It was simply an oral defense of the gospel, 00:24:01.369 --> 00:24:03.809 just a very ordinary method. Using his brain 00:24:03.809 --> 00:24:06.549 and his tongue, he was going to defend the gospel 00:24:06.549 --> 00:24:08.589 of Jesus Christ before the most powerful man 00:24:08.589 --> 00:24:15.170 in the world. And he commends the fact that there 00:24:15.170 --> 00:24:17.829 are people in Rome who are speaking the gospel. 00:24:20.769 --> 00:24:23.910 And he prays that even in his own circumstances 00:24:23.910 --> 00:24:29.319 that Christ might be magnified in his body that 00:24:29.319 --> 00:24:33.779 he would have boldness that Christ might be magnified. 00:24:34.380 --> 00:24:37.000 And the word boldness there means freedom of 00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:42.900 speech. So he wasn't talking about heroic deeds, 00:24:44.799 --> 00:24:47.880 unusual signs and wonders which might accompany 00:24:47.880 --> 00:24:52.500 him as an apostle and rightly so, but he was 00:24:52.500 --> 00:24:55.500 talking about speech, just ordinary means. That's 00:24:55.500 --> 00:25:00.410 how God advances the gospel through ordinary 00:25:00.410 --> 00:25:09.009 people using ordinary means and in ordinary circumstances. 00:25:12.250 --> 00:25:15.670 And in fact, Paul's circumstances were negative 00:25:15.670 --> 00:25:19.690 in one sense. He was in prison. He was suffering, 00:25:19.910 --> 00:25:23.410 as were the Philippians in a different way, but 00:25:23.410 --> 00:25:26.559 very much suffering by persecution. And Paul 00:25:26.559 --> 00:25:28.759 says, in all of these things, I am convinced 00:25:28.759 --> 00:25:33.460 that God is advancing the gospel through ordinary 00:25:33.460 --> 00:25:37.500 people using ordinary methods in ordinary circumstances. 00:25:40.440 --> 00:25:42.599 Say, how can I be used to advance the gospel? 00:25:42.680 --> 00:25:44.680 Right where you're going to be tomorrow, whatever 00:25:44.680 --> 00:25:47.759 your ordinary routine day involves, you share 00:25:47.759 --> 00:25:53.140 the gospel through your ordinary mouth. That's 00:25:53.140 --> 00:26:00.359 how God works. Certainly, God can do the supernatural 00:26:00.359 --> 00:26:04.079 and the spectacular. God can do that, but God 00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:06.640 chooses rather, on the whole, in general, to 00:26:06.640 --> 00:26:11.559 use the ordinary means. He could have sent angels 00:26:11.559 --> 00:26:14.779 who undoubtedly would do it more brilliantly 00:26:14.779 --> 00:26:19.200 than you or I, but God doesn't use angels to 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:21.960 advance the gospel. He uses ordinary people like 00:26:21.960 --> 00:26:25.900 you and me in the routine of our lives, just 00:26:25.900 --> 00:26:29.799 sharing Jesus Christ. That's the furtherance 00:26:29.799 --> 00:26:34.720 of the gospel. That demands a radical reorienting 00:26:34.720 --> 00:26:39.779 of our lives. To understand the why we're here 00:26:39.779 --> 00:26:42.220 and the circumstances we're in are intended by 00:26:42.220 --> 00:26:47.619 God for that purpose. Paul says in the text, 00:26:47.940 --> 00:26:52.019 I am set or I am appointed for the defense, the 00:26:52.019 --> 00:26:55.599 oral defense of the gospel. That is a clue to 00:26:55.599 --> 00:26:57.700 his theology about what he was experiencing. 00:26:57.700 --> 00:27:00.839 He is saying I am appointed here by God. I am 00:27:00.839 --> 00:27:05.839 set here by God. I am not the victim of some 00:27:05.839 --> 00:27:11.460 liars in Palestine who manipulated the system 00:27:11.460 --> 00:27:14.420 so that I would be forced to be imprisoned and 00:27:14.420 --> 00:27:19.339 here in Rome. He is saying I am set by God. I 00:27:19.339 --> 00:27:22.279 am appointed by God in these circumstances so 00:27:22.279 --> 00:27:29.150 that the gospel can be furthered. That demands 00:27:29.150 --> 00:27:30.890 that you and I look at our lives differently 00:27:30.890 --> 00:27:35.890 tomorrow, maybe even today. That the circumstances 00:27:35.890 --> 00:27:41.269 we're facing are allowed by God so that the gospel 00:27:41.269 --> 00:27:45.829 can be furthered. What a great purpose for life. 00:27:47.210 --> 00:27:52.599 One mission. And then we conclude as we study 00:27:52.599 --> 00:27:57.299 the gospel in chapter 1 of Philippians with verse 00:27:57.299 --> 00:28:01.140 27 where it talks about the faith of the gospel. 00:28:01.180 --> 00:28:04.700 What do you know? Another F. The faith of the 00:28:04.700 --> 00:28:10.140 gospel, verse 27. Only let your conduct be worthy 00:28:10.140 --> 00:28:15.000 of the gospel of Christ. So that whether I come 00:28:15.000 --> 00:28:18.240 and see you or am absent I may hear of your affairs 00:28:18.240 --> 00:28:21.400 that you stand fast in one spirit with one mind 00:28:21.400 --> 00:28:25.519 striving together for the faith of the gospel 00:28:25.519 --> 00:28:29.339 The word faith here is used in the sense of the 00:28:29.339 --> 00:28:34.700 body of belief that surrounds the gospel the 00:28:34.700 --> 00:28:38.859 faith of the gospel And he says basically that 00:28:38.859 --> 00:28:43.460 the gospel this body of truth that we call the 00:28:43.460 --> 00:28:50.480 gospel has three works its first work is to connect 00:28:50.480 --> 00:28:56.299 us to others in Christ you see that in Paul's 00:28:56.299 --> 00:28:58.519 relationship to the Philippians he says whether 00:28:58.519 --> 00:29:01.900 I'm absent or I'm with you that you may stand 00:29:01.900 --> 00:29:06.200 fast the gospel connects us with other people 00:29:06.200 --> 00:29:08.660 in Jesus Christ even connects us with people 00:29:08.660 --> 00:29:13.890 of past generations One of the hymns we sometimes 00:29:13.890 --> 00:29:18.390 sing talks of mystic sweet communion with those 00:29:18.390 --> 00:29:22.569 whose race is one. I don't know about you, I've 00:29:22.569 --> 00:29:24.890 never had too much mystic sweet communion with 00:29:24.890 --> 00:29:27.869 the dead. I'm not sure what that song is supposed 00:29:27.869 --> 00:29:33.329 to mean. But the fact is that there is a certain 00:29:33.329 --> 00:29:36.130 oneness even with those who are with Christ. 00:29:38.089 --> 00:29:42.000 That we're part of the same body. the same church. 00:29:42.680 --> 00:29:46.079 The gospel connects us to others. Yesterday I 00:29:46.079 --> 00:29:49.759 sat at a wedding. I don't too often get to do 00:29:49.759 --> 00:29:53.299 that, just to sit and witness it, be a guest. 00:29:54.359 --> 00:29:56.420 But I sat there at the wedding and I watched 00:29:56.420 --> 00:29:58.960 the grandparents being ushered in. My heart was 00:29:58.960 --> 00:30:04.039 touched as I watched them because I saw one generation 00:30:04.039 --> 00:30:07.539 and then another generation and finally the bride, 00:30:07.720 --> 00:30:11.640 a third generation come in. and all of them loving 00:30:11.640 --> 00:30:15.079 Jesus Christ being a part of the same thing. 00:30:16.059 --> 00:30:20.779 The gospel connected those generations. The gospel 00:30:20.779 --> 00:30:24.440 connects us with our differences of age or whatever 00:30:24.440 --> 00:30:27.880 the difference may be. It connects us with the 00:30:27.880 --> 00:30:32.640 same purpose. We also see that the gospel commands 00:30:32.640 --> 00:30:36.180 a worthy lifestyle. That's the second work of 00:30:36.180 --> 00:30:40.319 the gospel. We say we believe the gospel, this 00:30:40.319 --> 00:30:45.900 body of truth. We believe the faith that we're 00:30:45.900 --> 00:30:49.640 told to keep. Paul says, if you believe it, then 00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:54.819 live like it. Conduct yourselves worthily. The 00:30:54.819 --> 00:31:01.099 word worthy means worth as much as. He's saying, 00:31:01.160 --> 00:31:03.279 if you say you believe the gospel, then make 00:31:03.279 --> 00:31:05.940 sure that your life is worth as much as the gospel 00:31:05.940 --> 00:31:11.559 is worth. That's what he's saying. I haven't 00:31:11.559 --> 00:31:14.579 always been a preacher. I know congregations 00:31:14.579 --> 00:31:16.839 sometimes look at the preacher and they say, 00:31:17.759 --> 00:31:20.940 he's always been a preacher. No, I haven't always 00:31:20.940 --> 00:31:24.160 been a preacher. I grew up 18 years on the farm. 00:31:24.200 --> 00:31:29.259 I was a farmer for 18 years. And then for several 00:31:29.259 --> 00:31:31.059 years I was a college student, and while I was 00:31:31.059 --> 00:31:34.519 a college student I was lots of things. One of 00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:36.619 the things I did was to work for Beatrice Foods 00:31:36.619 --> 00:31:43.259 in Topeka, Kansas, in a dairy plant. And among 00:31:43.259 --> 00:31:46.059 a number of jobs that I had as a summer worker 00:31:46.059 --> 00:31:52.440 in between college years, I helped to package 00:31:52.440 --> 00:31:57.819 cottage cheese. Now, I hated cottage cheese, 00:31:57.980 --> 00:32:02.279 but I had never tried it either, and I learned 00:32:02.279 --> 00:32:06.289 to like it. during that summer. One of the jobs 00:32:06.289 --> 00:32:08.470 I had was to package cottage cheese and the first 00:32:08.470 --> 00:32:12.170 summer I was there in that dairy plant we did 00:32:12.170 --> 00:32:16.450 it all by hand. I remember one weekend it was 00:32:16.450 --> 00:32:18.690 around the 4th of July there was a sale on cottage 00:32:18.690 --> 00:32:24.130 cheese and every vat in which we made cottage 00:32:24.130 --> 00:32:27.369 cheese was used and it was all chopped up like 00:32:27.369 --> 00:32:30.210 it was supposed to be and there were three of 00:32:30.210 --> 00:32:33.500 us who are responsible for packaging hundreds 00:32:33.500 --> 00:32:35.619 and hundreds and hundreds of pounds of cottage 00:32:35.619 --> 00:32:42.500 cheese. We put in an 18 -hour day standing there 00:32:42.500 --> 00:32:46.200 packaging cottage cheese. Different size curds, 00:32:47.779 --> 00:32:52.059 different carton size, 12 ounce, 16 ounce, 24 00:32:52.059 --> 00:32:55.579 ounce, packaging cottage cheese. And I remember 00:32:55.579 --> 00:32:59.619 about hour 12, we got a little punchy. You can 00:32:59.619 --> 00:33:03.599 only package cottage cheese so long. before going 00:33:03.599 --> 00:33:07.839 out of your mind. So for about six hours, three 00:33:07.839 --> 00:33:10.160 insane people were packaging cottage cheese. 00:33:12.460 --> 00:33:14.579 And I'm telling you, some of the cottage cheese 00:33:14.579 --> 00:33:17.799 that went out of there about hour 15 or 16 had 00:33:17.799 --> 00:33:22.279 to be returned. Because you see, the carton just 00:33:22.279 --> 00:33:26.380 wasn't packaged right. It just wasn't packaged 00:33:26.380 --> 00:33:29.099 right and people were not willing to buy it because 00:33:29.099 --> 00:33:34.589 it wasn't worth it. the price they pay. Paul 00:33:34.589 --> 00:33:40.309 says, if you say you believe the gospel, that 00:33:40.309 --> 00:33:44.589 you possess the faith of the gospel, then let 00:33:44.589 --> 00:33:49.869 your life be worth that. Or else don't profess 00:33:49.869 --> 00:33:55.349 it. That's the implication. Conduct yourselves 00:33:55.349 --> 00:34:01.730 in a manner that is worthy. of the faith that 00:34:01.730 --> 00:34:05.950 you say you have. The gospel of Jesus Christ 00:34:05.950 --> 00:34:08.909 demands a radical reordering of our lives. It 00:34:08.909 --> 00:34:15.070 means that I can no longer see anyone apart from 00:34:15.070 --> 00:34:19.769 the cross of Jesus Christ. It's changed my vision. 00:34:22.630 --> 00:34:30.269 It's made me colorblind. It causes me to lose 00:34:30.269 --> 00:34:34.550 sight of all of the sinful distinctions that 00:34:34.550 --> 00:34:38.409 I may have made before. The gospel of Jesus Christ 00:34:38.409 --> 00:34:42.769 means I can no longer see anyone apart from the 00:34:42.769 --> 00:34:46.989 cross and through the cross. The gospel of Jesus 00:34:46.989 --> 00:34:50.690 Christ means I can no longer understand my circumstances 00:34:50.690 --> 00:34:57.090 apart from the cross. I can understand the snowstorm 00:34:57.090 --> 00:35:00.440 yesterday. that prevented our guest speaker from 00:35:00.440 --> 00:35:03.380 being here apart from the cross of Jesus Christ. 00:35:04.579 --> 00:35:06.900 I still don't have a full answer on that, but 00:35:06.900 --> 00:35:09.880 I dare not separate the cross from it, nor do 00:35:09.880 --> 00:35:15.179 you. The loss of your job, the breakup of that 00:35:15.179 --> 00:35:20.239 relationship, the illness of your loved one. 00:35:21.250 --> 00:35:23.929 Whatever the circumstances of our lives, we cannot 00:35:23.929 --> 00:35:26.150 separate those things from the cross of Jesus 00:35:26.150 --> 00:35:29.250 Christ because God is at work in our circumstances 00:35:29.250 --> 00:35:32.670 and what he is doing is advancing his purpose 00:35:32.670 --> 00:35:38.510 in the world, his mission, the gospel. Thirdly, 00:35:38.510 --> 00:35:42.489 it means I can no longer order my lifestyle apart 00:35:42.489 --> 00:35:45.210 from the cross of Jesus Christ by whom the world 00:35:45.210 --> 00:35:52.099 is crucified to me and I to the world. The gospel 00:35:52.099 --> 00:35:55.820 of Jesus Christ demands a radical reordering 00:35:55.820 --> 00:35:59.639 of my life and my lifestyle. I cannot live the 00:35:59.639 --> 00:36:02.260 way I once lived. I cannot live for what I once 00:36:02.260 --> 00:36:06.699 lived for. Everything comes to the cross, to 00:36:06.699 --> 00:36:14.760 Jesus. And it's measured by that. So as we conclude 00:36:14.760 --> 00:36:21.949 the service, let's ask the Lord How does my life 00:36:21.949 --> 00:36:28.210 today need to be reordered in the light of the 00:36:28.210 --> 00:36:36.389 gospel? Let's bow together. Obviously, I cannot 00:36:36.389 --> 00:36:41.610 answer that question for you. Only you can answer 00:36:41.610 --> 00:36:48.030 it. But what does the cross mean to your life? 00:36:49.130 --> 00:36:52.469 to the way that you think about other people. 00:36:54.849 --> 00:36:59.489 Even people who aren't nice. Even people who 00:36:59.489 --> 00:37:04.449 may smell bad. Even people who don't do their 00:37:04.449 --> 00:37:10.170 part of the bargain. People who are different 00:37:10.170 --> 00:37:16.389 than you in the way they feel about things. How 00:37:16.389 --> 00:37:19.099 does the cross need to be applied to your vision 00:37:19.099 --> 00:37:23.280 of others? How does the cross need to be applied 00:37:23.280 --> 00:37:26.179 in the way you see your circumstances, what you're 00:37:26.179 --> 00:37:30.519 passing through? Can you honestly say, God, I 00:37:30.519 --> 00:37:34.119 don't understand, but I give thanks, and I am 00:37:34.119 --> 00:37:37.880 trusting you that you are advancing the gospel 00:37:37.880 --> 00:37:42.980 through me as your child? How does the gospel 00:37:42.980 --> 00:37:44.980 need to be applied to your lifestyle choices? 00:37:47.210 --> 00:37:49.769 to the places you go and what you choose to see 00:37:49.769 --> 00:37:56.429 and rent to see. The kinds of materials that 00:37:56.429 --> 00:38:04.150 you read. The kinds of programs that you abide. 00:38:13.000 --> 00:38:15.860 The cross of Jesus Christ and the gospel that 00:38:15.860 --> 00:38:20.199 surrounds it demands a radical reordering. Let 00:38:20.199 --> 00:38:28.079 it begin. Father, too often we have professed 00:38:28.079 --> 00:38:34.000 the gospel simplistically and we have not seen 00:38:34.000 --> 00:38:37.320 the cross and its radical demands upon our lives. 00:38:39.320 --> 00:38:43.409 But we've been reminded Somewhat of that this 00:38:43.409 --> 00:38:49.190 morning. And so wherein any of us need to reorder 00:38:49.190 --> 00:38:51.750 our lives in obedience to the gospel, may we 00:38:51.750 --> 00:38:56.230 do it today. Being yielded and surrendered to 00:38:56.230 --> 00:39:00.489 the Lordship of Christ, saying, King of my life, 00:39:00.650 --> 00:39:05.610 I crown thee now, thine shall the glory be. May 00:39:05.610 --> 00:39:09.889 we do it and trust the power of the Holy Spirit. 00:39:10.349 --> 00:39:13.489 to bring about the kinds of practical changes 00:39:13.489 --> 00:39:17.349 that are necessary so that we may live as it 00:39:17.349 --> 00:39:22.389 becomes the gospel of Jesus Christ.